


12th Perigee's Eve

by Rogue of Heart (Akumeoi)



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe, Christmas, Christmas Eve, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Party, Christmas Presents, Domestic, Fluff, Gen, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-13
Updated: 2011-12-23
Packaged: 2018-02-10 09:54:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 10,349
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2020629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akumeoi/pseuds/Rogue%20of%20Heart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Post-SGRUB Christmas fic. Super fluffy. Every troll gets one chapter. No ships pushed except Kanaya ♦ Vriska. Incidental Karkezi, meowrails, pale GamKar, GamTav.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Introduction

Twelfth Perigee's Eve. One of the few holidays on Alternia. One of the most cherished times of the year, when love and kindness could flow freely from one heart to another without requiring a quadrant bond. A time to fix mistakes and seek reconciliation. A time to rebuild and to mend.

This year's holiday was more special than all the ones that had preceded it, seeing as the entire troll race had ceased to exist for about a year. Just a scant two months after the planet was restored and the twelve troll heroes rebuilt their hives and tried to pick up the reigns of their shattered lives, Twelfth Perigee's Eve rolled around again. Having survived so much, gained so much, and lost so much, the twelve weren't inclined to ask for much. The pain of the loss of their lusii was still too fresh for some. All told, no one really dared to hope for happiness this year.

But somehow, amidst the general mourning, each troll found him or herself in a special moment, holding a little piece of hope that was his alone. Each special moment began with a gift – from a good friend, from an enemy, from everyone he knew. For one hour each, the gloom was lifted, and the trolls were filled with what a less cynical person might call the spirit of Twelfth Perigee's Eve.

Their lives start now.


	2. Aradia Megido

ARADIA

Wish-list:  
-new weapon (whip preferred!)  
-home decoration objects of any sort  
-the loan of the last remaining alchimeter, for one week  
-knee socks 0u0

Time: 6:30 AM

Snow was falling softly when Aradia woke up. She stayed in her recuperacoon for a few moments, watching the fluffy flakes float down to pile up on her windowsill, then bounced downstairs and found herself some breakfast.

Her tiny hive was warm and snug on that cold morning. Having lived without a hive for so long, she hadn't wanted to re-build the monster she'd originally called her own. This small one was just fine.

Of all the trolls, Aradia was perhaps the happiest. Something about being resurrected after three long sweeps had incorporated into her being an unshakeable optimism. This morning, though, a tinge of melancholy invaded her thoughts as she munched warmed-over dinner slathered in grub sauce to disguise the freezer burn. The sense of isolation from the rest of the world had _not_ gone away when she'd arisen again, and truth be told, that was another reason she hadn't wanted a large hive. A small, cosy one wouldn't always remind her that she was alone.

She watched the snow again and wondered if there was any way she'd be able to leave the hive that afternoon.

At 6:56 precisely, a small pile of presents appearified in her living room, courtesy of Sollux, the one with the appearifier.

Gifts!

Aradia perked up a little. She hurriedly put her plate and cup in the sink and left the kitchen. Three day old hoofbeast flesh wasn't going to win out against Perigee presents.

She was hoping for something good this sweep, since she hadn't celebrated it the last three sweeps. Decorations to make her hive a home, a new weapon to play with, and socks! Well, that last was something of a joke. Before she died she'd had a fondness for knee socks, but after her death she'd just worn the same pair over and over every day – ghosts don't sweat, so why bother to change them? But somehow she thought that to really feel like herself again, she should get a few more pairs to replace her former huge collection. 

Twelve packages were scattered over her sofa – one from each of the other trolls, plus one from the humans. She identified Gamzee's right away – it was shaped like a four-pack of Faygo and covered in green-smeared newspaper. Nepeta's was wrapped in the hide of some unfortunate beast, and decorated liberally with feathers instead of a ribbon. Terezi had painted her own paper, too, oh, dear.

The first one she opened was Equius's. Tucked on top was a small knife - that must be the weapon, she guessed – and underneath it were three pairs of fishnet socks that looked as if they'd go up to her mid-thigh. She laughed aloud; she hadn't thought that anyone would actually get any for her, much less _him_.

She opened Feferi's package. She'd sent her some lacy coral to put on a shelf or something, and used socks patterned with cuttlefish to wrap it so it wouldn't break.

As she opened gift after gift, she discovered that each one of her friends had sent her socks. Knitted socks from Rose, stripy sweater-tights from Jade, embroidered rainbow monsters from Kanaya. Furry… somethings from Nepeta ("i know theyre more like boots than socks but im sure theyll do, right? it's all i had on paw fur such short notice!"), and incredibly, a pair of seahorse-patterned socks from Eridan, along with a dead, dried-out puffer fish mounted as one would a hunting trophy. Gamzee had indeed sent her Faygo, but only two out of four bottles were full. He'd drunk the other two and refilled one with seashells and pinecones, and the other with tie-dyed acid-green socks. It almost looked as if he'd dyed them himself with sopor slime. It almost smelled like it, too.

In half an hour, Aradia found herself surrounded by piles and piles of colourful socks; every one of those twelve boxes had contained at least one pair.

She opened Sollux's box last. There was one pair each of red, blue, and purple socks. At the bottom of the box was a note that read, "Happy Perigee's Eve, Aradia! Of course you can borrow the alchimeter. Love, Sollux. P.S. Hope you like the socks."

She put one blue-and-white-striped sock on her right foot, and one purple polka-dotted one on the left, and began to laugh. What had been half a joke had grown into half a miracle.

She didn't feel so alone anymore.


	3. Equius Zahhak

EQUIUS

Wish list:  
D--> Any scrap metal you can come up with  
D--> A better micro-solder gun  
D--> Some new tools, any sort  
D--> A bow I can't break

Time: 7:30 AM

Equius stepped out the door of his hive and stumbled over something buried in the two inches of snow that had accumulated on the doorstep. He'd already opened his packages; they had all contained tools. He'd messaged Nepeta 'Happy Perigee's Eve,' but she wasn't up yet.

He'd met his twelve gifts with a flood of mixed emotions. He was glad his friends – if he could even call them that – had cared enough to get him things, but he didn't think he deserved them. Ever since he'd let Nepeta down, he'd wondered every day why he had been resurrected. How worthless was he, that he couldn't even save his moirail from a half-insane thirteen-year-old clown?

He didn't know who the strongest one was anymore, but it certainly wasn't him.

Yet here he was, going outside to get a real behemoth leaving since no one had a lusus do to it for them anymore. Nepeta's request. It was a little late, but she'd appreciate it all the same. And then he fell over that stick.

He snatched it up angrily and was about to snap it in half, when he heard a soft, distinctive twang and saw that it wasn't just a stick. It was a bow.

And what a bow!

The thing he was holding was a longbow, almost taller than him. The smooth black wood curved into a perfect arc, turning up at the ends slightly, like a mischievous smile. The sides were elegantly inlaid with pearly stones cut into the shapes of majestic musclebeasts, intricately entwined vines, and flora and fauna from all over the planet. The string was a dull silver wire, gleaming softly at him. It was possibly the most beautiful object he had ever seen.

He guessed it had been learning up against the side of the hive but had then fallen over, which is why he had tripped over it. It didn't seem any the worse for wear for having been outside in the biting cold for a little while.

There was a note attached to it. He quickly snapped the string and read the small square of blue paper.

"Heeeeeeeey Equius,  
Guess who this 8elonged to? Darkleeeeeeeer!!!!!!!! I never paid you 8ack for the ro8ot 8ody for Aradia, so consider our de8t to 8e null and void. Don't ever talk to me a8out it. There weren't any arrows with this thing anyway. Happy Perigee's Eve!  
~Vriska ;;;;)"

Thanks, Vriska, another thing to break. Way to raise his self-esteem. Equius dropped the note into the snow.

He tentatively drew the string back a fraction of an inch, with all the force he'd use to screw in a particularly delicate metal plate or to pick Nepeta up. Then he let it go.

The bow let out another soft twang and the string snapped back into place. There was no sound of cracking and splintering wood, so he examined the bow again. It didn't look damaged in the slightest.

Equius stared at the thing he held in his hands, then pawed through the snow at his feat to re-read the note again. In a mess of scribbled loops – the eight Es – he found his ancestor's name.

Was it really possible that this was Darkleer's? Precious artefacts did seem to find their way into Vriska's hands remarkably easily. With growing hope, he decided to test it one more time. Not by dry-firing again – if this object was truly as precious as it seemed, he couldn't risk damaging it in a way as stupid as that. He pulled an arrow out of his sylladex. Not a very well crafted weapon, but it would certainly do the trick for this. Fitting it to the string, he picked the trunk of a nearby tree as a target.

He lifted the bow into place. He didn't want to break it, but he wanted to fire it so badly. He thought of the hundreds of bows he'd had before this one, the ones that had cracked and splintered and exploded apart in his hands.

Drawing back the string as far as it would go, he let the arrow fly. There was no crack, no snap, no explosion. All he heard was the soft twang. And a whump, as the arrow hit the tree and embedded itself up to the fletching.

The bow was completely undamaged.

Equius simply stared.

It was his, the bow was Darkleer's. There was no question of it. And he, Equius Zahhak, the world's worst archer, had just shot a bow and _hit the target_.

What a feeling.

He might have stood there forever with his mouth open had a little pile of snow not fallen off the roof and landed on his head. He realized that he was cold and had to get moving to warm up. And – oops – it was almost 8:00 and he had to go hunting.

Hunting?

He looked at the bow.

And smiled.


	4. Nepeta Leijon

Wish list:  
:33 ~ New paint set  
:33 ~ Better tablet  
:33 ~ Platinum to alchemise with claws  
:33 ~ New hat

Time: 8:30 AM

Nepeta actually _had_ been awake when Equius had messaged her that day; she'd been up since 4:30. She'd been on her feet all morning rushing about, decorating, painting in a frenzy, and when he'd called she just hadn't been in the mood to talk to him.

Why? Because he hadn't gotten her a gift.

That hurt. She knew he'd gotten things for other people, because she'd helped him pick them out. He'd been depressed and somewhat distant lately, in spite of her best attempts to cheer him up, but that was no excuse to forget her. She'd sent him a new micro-solder gun, which he'd specifically asked for. She'd asked for a new hat to replace the old one, sweaty and bloody and ripped as it was. That might have been a little much, she admitted, but he could have sent her a card, at least.

So she ignored Trollian's insistent pinging, turned the sound off, and went back to painting. The whole of her giant hive had to be perfect!

As she worked, self-doubt crept into her lonely thoughts.

Was he angry with her? Had she done something wrong? Perhaps he blamed her for not being able to help him more, for not being a good enough morail. He knew she had her own problems; being killed had been rather traumatic, but she thought she was doing better than he was.

Maybe he just forgot? No, he'd never forget _her_ , would he?

Her doorbell rang.

Now that was strange. She wasn't expecting anyone yet. She checked the time – 9:00. What were they thinking?

Quite aware that she was liberally splattered with paint, that there was a sprig of holly stuck in her hair, and that the hive was a mess, she sprinted to the door. With her free hand she grabbed at the holly.

Equius was on her doorstep with a giant bow slung over his shoulder, grinning broadly.

Her hand dropped from her hair. Behind him was the biggest behemoth leaving she'd ever seen. Proudly topping it was a brand-new cat hat. A matching pin-on tail, pair of shoes, and claw-gloves were hung from the branches.

"Happy Perigee's Eve, Nepeta," Equius said. "I apologize for not being exactly on time, but I was unfortunately delayed with the preparations for this occasion."

He took the hat off the top of the leaving and handed it to her.

"I hope you find that this gift meets your specifications. I am perfectly aware that this is paltry in light of all you've done for me, but I hope you like it," he said. Nepeta threw her arms around his neck.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she yelled in his ear. "Where did you get it from?"

"Kanaya and I cooperated in this matter," he explained. "I know the colour isn't exactly the same, but-"

"No, silly, it's purrfect!" Nepeta said. She snatched it out of his hands and would have jammed it onto her head had she not spiked her wrist on the holly and remembered the paint caked into her bangs.

"Oh, oops, better try it on later," she said. "I'm so excited! Oh, hey, why don't you come in? I'm freezing."

Equius handed her the rest of the accessories, then heaved the behemoth leaving into the hive. It wouldn't fit through the doorway unless he turned it sideways, but Nepeta's living room had a ceiling high enough to accommodate it. She put her new hat in her respiteblock, one of the few paint-free rooms in the house, with the presents she'd received that morning.

"Nepeta, did you eat breakfast?" Equius said, somewhat accusingly. When she admitted she hadn't, he said, "In that case, would you like me to help you finish painting?"

Nepeta smiled gratefully. "That would be fabulous," she said. "This Perigee's Eve is going to be the best efur!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please excuse the alteration of Nepeta's quirk. The HTML was messing up otherwise, sadly. If anyone knows how to get around this problem, please tell me.


	5. Eridan Ampora

Wish list:  
-neww ring  
-another science wwand  
-ipod (human thing)  
-a mother-glubbin friend, already

Time: 9:30 AM

The gifts scattered across Eridan's floor should have been a hipster's treasure trove. Jewellery, scarves, a pair of socks that might have been destined for Aradia, but with Gamzee one could never tell. But Eridan hadn't gotten anything on his list, and it was pissing him off. 

Okay, the science wand he could understand, given the damage he'd done with the last one. But the ring? How would that have hurt anything? He'd gotten the ipod, but what he'd really wanted was the headphones that should have gone with it. Those stupid kids had given him earbuds. Earbuds? What the hell was he supposed to do with those? He barely even had external ears, for gog's sake.

"Twelfth Perigee's Eve, huh," he muttered as he stomped around his hive. He wasn't so depressed that he forgot to switch out his old scarf for a new one. It was from, of all people, Sollux.

Sollux. He of all people made Eridan remember the last thing on the list… the friend. Of course he hadn't actually put that on the list he'd given to the others, but he was hoping. No one really wanted to talk to him anymore, let alone give him things. Kanaya and Feferi hadn't gotten him anything. That he could also understand.

Deciding he would stay home alone and wait for everyone to notice he was missing, Eridan flounced over to his couch to watch a movie of some sort, preferably one where a lot of lowbloods died. As he sat down, his Trollian let out a little flurry of pinging noise. He sighed dramatically and went to see who wanted him.

TA: hey there, fish face.  
TA: happy twelfth perigee's eve.  
CA: you too rustblood

Eridan sneered. He really wanted to strangle Sollux. Did he have to do this now, when he was already in a bad mood?

TA: d0n't be like that.  
CA: wwhale you started it  
TA: s0rry  
CA: wwhat?

Eridan could hardly believe what he was reading. Sollux Captor apologizing to Eridan Ampora? No way in hell was this real.

TA: d0n't make this any harder than it has t0 be, eridan.  
TA: i kn0w y0u're n0t the best of tr0lls.  
TA: ^^just wanted t0 make that clear.  
TA: but i've been thinking about sgrub and h0w i was when we were playing it,  
TA: and i n0ticed that i wasn't either.  
TA: the best of tr0lls, i mean.  
TA: i kn0w i wasn't s0 nice to you, and i regret it.  
TA: i'm n0t saying that y0u're n0t an assh0le 0r that y0u didn't deserve it,  
TA: i'm saying that i sh0uldn't have taken it that far, and i regret it.

Eridan stared at the computer in disbelief. He actually rubbed his eyes before re-reading what Sollux had just written. Was he really... forgiven?  
No, that wasn't right. But at least he wasn't hated anymore, by one troll.

CA: i prolly did deservve it  
CA: i knoww that noww a course  
CA: i guess im sorry too  
CA: i wwas the one wwho tried to kill you an killed your matesprit an evveryfin  
CA: so im apologizin too i guess  
TA: seri0usly did n0t expect that.  
TA: i d0n't kn0w what t0 say.  
CA: me neither  
CA: wwhale this is reely glubbin awwkwward  
TA: yep.  
CA: does this make us fronds then sol  
TA: I can't believe I'm saying this, but yes.

Eridan looked at his wishlist and wondered…

CA: in that case got any more presents you wwanna givve me  
TA: what?  
TA: n0…

Oops. Nice going, Ampora. Way to ruin the moment.

CA: im jokin a course sol  
CA: thats wwhat fronds do isnt it  
TA: i just kn0w i'm g0ing t0 regret this.  
CA: oops i got to go  
CA: i got somefin to do for tonight  
CA: happy twwelfth perigees evve sol  
TA: y0u t00.  
TA: bye.

Eridan congratulated himself for a nice save. He was still slightly dazed. Of all the trolls to reach out to him, Sollux was the last one he would have guessed. It was the last one he deserved, too. He wondered what had prompted this, but knew he could never ask. Don't look a free hoofbeast in the fangs, as they said.

Maybe he should do the same to all the others. Especially Kanaya. Gog, that would be one awkward conversation. He re-read the pesterlog he'd just participated in, and thought,

_Thank you, friend._


	6. Feferi Peixes

Wish list:  
-Fis)( tanks  
-Cuttlefis)( food (bugs, especially mellowflies)  
-Any raw )(ides you can find  
-TO SAV---E T)(---E CUTTL---EFIS)(!

Time: 10:30

The cuttlefish were dying out, Feferi just knew it. Although Alternia the planet, the troll race, and the essential breeding grounds and young lusii had been saved, wild flora and fauna had not been so fortunate with second chances. Her own Gl'bgolyb had not made it. Where last sweep there had been a thriving colony of mer-wabes, now there was only bare rock. She saw buttersquid once a week, not once a day. Nepeta told her the woods were in similar straits, but recovering. But in the oceans, the friendly, colourful cuttlefish were receding in number day after day, slowly dying out and fading away.

Feferi could not let that happen. She wanted to be worthy of her trolltag, to save her favourite species, to do her job as abdicated empress and restore her people's natural wealth. So she started a campaign to pen and breed every cuttlefish she could find. The items she'd requested for Twelfth Perigee's Eve were all the tools necessary to accomplish this goal.

After unpacking all her new supplies (Nepeta and Terezi had been very helpful in the way of hides; Gamzee in the way of bugs), she went to the cuttlefish nursery, a specially built room she'd had constructed near her hive. All her subjects were coming along nicely, she noted. After installing the new supplies and feeding all the fish, she was exhausted. At least they were all happy to see her. That was the nice thing about cuttlefish – they were affectionate. If only they weren't all about to be dead.

It was as she left the nursery, to take a nap and change her clothes, that she saw it.

At first, she couldn't believe her eyes. It was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen.

A rainbow cuttlefish – a creature so rare she'd never seen it even before SGRUB. It took her breath away – the soft, gently pulsing sunburst of colours, the delicately fluttering tentacles, the affectionate gleam in its warm black eyes. Feferi watched it, slowly holding out her hand to it, too entranced to do anything else.

The little rainbow cuttlefish swam straight to Feferi's outstretched hand and nuzzled her fingers. Clicking its beak happily, it swam up to her shoulder and cooed into her ear. Feferi thought it was the friendliest little fish she'd ever met.

"Hey there," she said, and it squawked just like it understood.

"You are just so cute!" Feferi squealed. She pulled a net out of her sylladex; this little guy was definitely coming with her. 

Ten minutes later, the rainbow cuttlefish was happily installed in a tank in Feferi's respiteblock.

"What am I going to call you?" she asked him. He regarded her steadily with adoring eyes.

"You are just the most perfect Twelfth Perigee surprise," Feferi said. "Hey, I know! How about I call you Surprise? Would you like that?"

The cuttlefish chirped excitedly.

"Great," Feferi said. She petted her new pet and giggled as he tickled her with his tentacles.

"Happy Twelfth Perigee's Eve, Surprise," she laughed.


	7. Sollux Captor

Wish list:  
 ~~-2ome more bee2 would be nii2e, II gue22~~  
-n0thing, really

Time: 11:30 AM

Sollux sat back from the computer, feeling very pleased with himself. The last issue left over from SGRUB was finally resolved, and what a great feeling it was. The voices in his head were gone, and so was that awful lii2p. He and Aradia were friends again; he had made peace with Eridan. He wasn't sure how long it would last, but it was good enough for now.

Allowing himself a contented sigh, he glanced around his hive, which was full to the brim with electronic and technological marvels collected from SGRUB.

Yes, all was right in his world.

Now what?

What Sollux really wanted, really _needed_ , for Twelfth Perigee's Eve, was a purpose.

All his life thus far had been geared towards the game, he realised now. The voices in his head, the visions, everything. Even his skills in computer programming had been significant during SGRUB. He supposed he was still interested in codes, but he was hesitant to try them out again. His last experiment had killed all their lusii, for gog's sake.

He still missed bicyclops-dad, as a matter of fact.

It was midnight. He should probably eat some lunch. He remembered that practically all he had on hand was a grubloaf. Ooh, another grubloaf, how fucking exciting. Sollux stood up and listlessly went to the window, to stare moodily at the snow that was still softly falling.

Trollian pinged, and Sollux sight and went drearily back to his computer to see who wanted him.

Feferi. He smiled.

TA: hey, ff. happy 12th perigee's eve!  
CC: )(i, Sollux.  
CC: )(APPY P-ERIG-E-E'S –EV---E TO YOU TOO!  
TA: h0w's it g0ing?  
CC: Great! I just found a rainbow cuttlefish. I named )(im Surprise. 38D  
TA: i th0ught y0u weren't keeping them as pets.  
CC: Well, t)(is little guy was just so CUT----E! I couldn't leave )(im all alone in t)(e middle of t)(e ocean, now could I?  
CC: And besides, )(e's special. T)(e rainbow ones are really rare. I never saw one even B-EFOR---E Sgrub!  
TA: h0w are the rest 0f the cuttlefish?  
CC: They're okay. I just wish there were more of them so I could breed more faster!  
TA: i guess y0u just have t0 be patient ff, i'm s0rry.  
CC: I wish there were a way to alchemize more or something. Then we'd have a TON!  
CC: Too bad we can't just appearify them from the past.  
TA: well yeah... n0 appearifier.  
CC: We have an alchimeter.  
TA: y0u need a punched card f0r the alchimeter, and captchal0guing animals kills them.  
CC: I know, I played too!!!  
TA: s0rry, ff.  
CC: I wish it didn't, though. 38/

Sollux was about to explain the mechanics of sylladexes to her, then stopped himself. If he actually wanted to help her (and he did) he should go about it some other way than by imparting to her useless technical knowledge she would soon forget.

Wasn't there anything he and his technology could do? Well, apart from somehow figuring out the code for an appearafier and alchemizing a new one.

... _Idea_.

Well, hello, why the heck hadn't he thought of that before?! Wake up Sollux – there's a whole world of things out there to create! And... Feferi would love him for it. Bonus.

TA: y0u kn0w what?  
TA: i'm w0rking 0n it.  
CC: R-EALLY?  
CC: T)(anks, Sollux!!  
TA: no problem. 

And this kind of tinkering certainly wouldn't lead to the disaster that the previous coding had, since it was intended to create rather than destroy. And no more tying things to the lifespan of the universe!

It was perfect.

Sollux had a life again.


	8. Kanaya Maryam

Wish list:  
-New Crafting Scissors With Interesting Edges  
-Any Fabrics You Can Procure With Ease, Especially Ones In Shades Of Red Or Yellow  
-Sequins  
-Buttons  
-A Next-Door Neighbour

Time: 12:30 AM

Kanaya spent the morning putting the finishing touches on the new dress for that evening. It was nice to be making something for herself, she reflected. The past few weeks all she'd been working on was gifts. It would also be good for her to get out of the hive; she needed to socialize more, and as she was no longer living in the middle of nowhere she had no excuse not to.

Except that she didn't want people to see her and point and stare. And she could go out during the day, but her friends wouldn't be awake, and she didn't want them to risk blinding themselves to accommodate her. She could visit Sollux or Terezi, but they didn't live very close to her, and they weren't the best of her friends anyway.

She did wish people would stop staring, though. Rainbow drinkers weren't that unheard of, and she hadn't even killed anybody yet. And she didn't _plan_ on eating anyone either! In spite of this resolution, she didn't have any neighbours. There were three empty hives around her.

She'd thought of adopting a lusus-less wriggler for companionship, but then people would say she was raising it to eat.

Kanaya was trying to coax herself out of these dark thoughts, adding the last few beads to her dress, and wondering if she should get a snack when someone knocked on the door of her hive. She spat a pin across the room. The other two in her mouth dropped onto the dress. The knocking came again as she sat frozen in shock.

Who would want to come talk to her? Karkat had come a week ago, but he always gave warning before he showed up. Kanaya got up slowly, taking her capped lipstick in one hand. She went quickly down the stairs, hoping this wasn't all a big joke. It was Twelfth Perigee's Eve, surely no one would –

The knocking at the door again. Whoever was out there must be extremely impatient.

Kanaya hesitated with her hand on the knob. Her lipstick throbbed in her fingers, waiting to be released.

She opened the door.

Vriska was standing on her porch, with one arm draped over the railing in a casually bored way. Snow spangled her hair. Kanaya recoiled in shock.

The two trolls stared at each other.

"Kanaya?" Vriska said incredulously. "You look terrible!"

"Thank you for your kind observation," Kanaya said sarcastically. "What brings you to my humble abode this fine morning?"

"I came to say Happy Twelfth Perigee's Eve, of course!" Vriska said. "And I have a surprise for you. Can I come it? It's below freezing out here!"

Quietly putting the lipstick back in her sylladex, Kanaya stepped back to allow Vriska entry into the hive, then closed the door behind her. She led her friend to the sitting room, but Vriska stopped on the threshold.

"This room is a pigsty," she announced. Kanaya, startled, looked over the room as if seeing it for the first time.

Scraps of fabric practically carpeted the floor, while a multitude of crafting supplies and half-finished projects littered every surface. A carton of unprocessed paint, which made an okay blood substitute, was on its side, dripping murky brown liquid onto a plate of mould-furry legumes and a few gummed-up paintbrushes. There was a squashed, upside-down shoe under the table with its match nowhere in sight; the bookshelf was adorned with the contents of half a jar of purple and gold sequins. Books, papers, dress patterns, and a cookbook were draped across the table and spilled over to the floor on all sides except the one with the chair, which had a few bolts of fabric sitting on it. There were feathers glued to one wall, and even the ceiling. 

Kanaya blinked. "When did _that_ happen?" she muttered. She recalled Karkat falling over a few things and almost impaling himself on a pincushion – no, some knitting needles – oh, she couldn't quite recall what –

Her life was a disaster.

"And how?" she said. Her voice echoed quietly around the room, and she realised that Vriska was silent, looking at her oddly.

"Are you... okay?" Vriska said hesitantly.

Had she really just heard that? Things must be worse than she thought.

"I don't know," Kanaya admitted in a small voice. Vriska shifted awkwardly from food to foot.

"I'd say a hug is customary in these circumstances, isn't it, Fussyfangs?" Vriska said.

"It is," Kanaya said hesitantly, hopefully. The two girls awkwardly embraced for a moment.

"Boy, do you need to get out more," Vriska said.

Kanaya half-laughed. "I would. And yet no one likes a rainbow drinker, it seems," she said.

"Jegus, what is wrong with them? You helped save their asses from total oblivion! What the hell is their problem?" Vriska said angrily.

"The saving of the multitude does not earn grace from the individual," Kanaya pointed out.

"So that's why there are a ton of empty hives around here," Vriska said. "Oh, yeah, that was the surprise."

"Pardon me?" Kanaya said, confused.

"I can't bear living with Equius and Eridan anymore, so blood colour be damned, I'm moving in next to you, Fussyfangs!" Vriska said.

"Really?" Kanaya said. There was an awkward silence for a moment. She hadn't intended for her tone to sound quite so plaintive and... lost. Vriska's rare gesture of kindness meant so much to her, and of course Vriska had no idea just how much. Tears began to pool in her eyes and her throat hitched.

"Th-thank you," she said shakily.

"What's wrong with you? I tell you I'm going to move in, and you go and cry about it?" Vriska said, sounding insulted. Kanaya couldn't help laughing.

"Really, thank you. And I'll help you move in, if you so desire," Kanaya said.

"No need. I did it all this morning. And besides, I'd say from the looks of this place, you need more help from me," Vriska said.

"You moved everything in this morning?" Kanaya said, amazed.

"I had help," Vriska admitted. "So, do you want a hand or not?"

Kanaya smiled. "Yes, please," she said. "Let's fix this."


	9. Vriska Serket

~~Wish list~~ Check list:  
√ Give 8ow to Equius  
√ Move in to new hive  
__ Help Fussyfangs clean up  
__ 8e forgiven

Time: 1:30 PM

"I'm bored," Vriska announced.

"We've been working for half an hour," Kanaya said, humour glinting in her eyes.

"Oh."

"Well, forty-five minutes," Kanaya said generously.

"But I'm boooooooored."

Just as Vriska was bad at being patient, so was she bad at feelings. It wasn't that she didn't understand them, it was that she didn't notice them until it was too late.

Which is why she seemed to be fixing mistakes without end this Twelfth Perigee's Eve. At John's urging, sure, but he was right. She needed to make amends.

Vriska picked up a bolt of shimmery blue fabric, the edge of which was ripped and stained.

"Do we save this?" she said.

"Yes," Kanaya said, descending with the scissors. Snipping the ruined parts away, she raised an eyebrow at Vriska.

"Would you agree to keep working if we allow ourselves a break at the hour mark? I have not yet eaten lunch," she said.

"Great," Vriska said. She worked with a will – okay, half a will – okay, one eighth of a will – for fifteen more minutes. While she scrubbed down the now-bare table, Kanaya rummaged in the fridge for something for both of them to eat. After dumping the sponge in the sink, Vriska helped Kanaya take three laden trays into the newly-cleared sitting room. She put the tray on the table and pulled up the cleaner of the two chairs.

"This looks great," Vriska said, reaching for the grub sauce.

"Have you already eaten?" Kanaya asked.

"Yes," Vriska said, around a mouthful of gourdfruit. But she was always hungry.

"This room is starting to look really nice," Kanaya said. "My profound thanks for all your help."

"Starting?" Vriska said suspiciously. The room looked done to _her_. "How many other rooms do you have?"

"It's _almost_ finished," Kanaya conceded, taking a sip from her glass full of yellow-brown liquid.

"That better not be from that disgusting paint carton," Vriska said.

"It is not. I procured a new carton of paint from the refrigerator. But I am in dire need of a shopping trip, and this paint is expensive," Kanaya said. "I am very grateful for my continuing ability to digest solid food."

"You could just kill people. I could help you, since I haven't got a lusus to feed anymore. You shouldn't have to live on paint," Vriska said.

"The world is not as full of trolls as it once was," Kanaya said. "And the trolls who live around me detest me enough as it is."

"Who cares what other people think?" Vriska said, as if the answer were obvious.

"I do not wish to become a social pariah, and my blood colour is not high enough on the hemospectrum that such wanton destruction of potential soldiers would be tolerated by Her Imperious Condenscion and the Imperial Drones," Kanaya said.

"Please, killing each other is what trolls do," Vriska said. "It's part of our natures."

"Might I observe that you haven't killed anyone since Tavros?" Kanaya said cautiously.

Vriska blushed. "No lusus, remember?" she said.

"You have had multiple opportunities to revenge yourself on Terezi, as a proper troll would, and yet you have not taken them," Kanaya said.

Vriska coloured even harder. "The team needed to stay together," she snapped. "And I couldn't kill Karkat's matesprit!"

"Why not?" Kanaya said.

"I respect that idiot, okay?" she said. "I'd like to see _you_ keep eleven other trolls in line for almost a month! It's a miracle we made it as long as we did, okay?"

"And to think that Tavros was the first to die," Kanaya said softly.

Vriska stared at her, mouth open. "What are you suggesting?" she demanded, pushing her plate away from her, about to leap out of her seat.

Kanaya looked away from her. "I suppose you feel guilty about it," she said.

Vriska closed her mouth. The colour drained from her face; it was white where moments before the angry blush had been.

"John wouldn't dare tell me that," she said. Kanaya flinched and pressed her lips tightly together, her cheeks dark green.

"Dammit, Fussyfangs, why do you have to be right all the time?" Vriska said. Kanaya looked up. Angry tears glittered behind Vriska's glasses.

"I'm... I'm sorry," Kanaya said.

Vriska took a deep breath. "I don't even know why I regret it so much," she said.

There was silence for a minute.

"May I?" Kanaya said hesitantly.

"Whateveeeeeeeer," Vriska said.

"Perhaps it wears on you so much because you weren't ready for it. You were unsure of which quadrant your feelings for Tavros were truly in, if indeed they were in a quadrant at all. Because you killed him you were unable to determine the truth, and now of course you feel that you have no right to interact with him, or that if you do you should be hostile or risk seeming inconsistent. And the rest of us have been giving you such a hard time about your decision," Kanaya said.

"Damn your eyes, how do you know all that?" Vriska said.

"I don't know," Kanaya said honestly. "It was just a guess."

Vriska stood up abruptly. For a moment she looked as if she were about to vault over the table and leave, but she didn't. She stood there for a moment, then sat down and pulled her plate back towards her again.

"We are such basket cases," she said nonchalantly, taking a big mouthful.

"I know. Although at least my sitting room won't be the basket for us to have a case in much longer," Kanaya said wryly. Vriska's mouth quirked up at one corner. The two of them looked up at exactly the same time and they caught each other's eyes.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Fussyfangs?" Vriska said.

"I would... hope so," Kanaya said. There was an awkward pause.

"I shouldn't have ignored you so much, before," Vriska said, and Kanaya understood that was all the apology that she'd ever get out of her thorny friend. When Kanaya didn't reply, Vriska looked up again. She held her hand out over the table as if she were concluding a business deal.

"Moirails?" she said.

Feeling absurd, Kanaya took her hand and gave it a small shake. "Indeed," she said.

"Kanaya, you are a _gr8_ friend," Vriska said.

And she meant it.


	10. Tavros Nitram

Wish list:  
-Another Tinkerbull plush  
-Fairy posters  
-A new FLARP manual  
-To fly

Time: 2:30 PM

Every year on Twelfth Perigee's Eve, Tavros wished to fly. And every year, on Twelfth Perigee's Eve as the clock struck midnight, Tavros conceded failure once again. For this reason, he hated the holidays.

This year, he wasn't sure if he wanted to put himself through that again. He had his own legs back; asking for wings would just be greedy. His fragile hope and self esteem didn't need that kind of bashing again. But he couldn't help but long to take to the skies again, especially after having tasted Prospit.

So at 2:30 that afternoon, he closed his eyes, sat on his bed holding his new Tinkerbull plush from Kanaya, and begged from the depths of his soul for wings. His longing was so strong he almost thought it would shoot out of his fingers or his eyes. He balled his hands into fists.

Was there something shooting out of his spine? His back was throbbing as if any minute it might burst apart, like the wings of a butterfly suddenly erupting from the chrysalis. He sat there for long minutes, the skin on his knuckles white as he tightened his fists, hoping, wishing, praying.

He heard a loud thump, followed by a squawk, and jumped, snapping out of his reverie. Back still throbbing, he went to the mirror and tried to check his back by twisting his neck awkwardly from side to side.

Nothing had changed.

Bitterly disappointed, he kicked his bedpost, an uncharacteristic expression of anger. The noise that had pulled him back to earth rang out again from outside his window. He stomped out of his hive and into the snow, in only his thin jacket. Shivering, he stared at the sight before him.

Every bird within a 20km radius had gathered on the roof of his hive and the snow around it. Tiny flakes fell on smooth, dappled plumage, soft, downy feathers, and sharp talons and beaks.

Tavros felt an unfamiliar emotion welling within him, and discovered it was anger.

"Get out of here!" he yelled. His voice sounded muffled through the snow. How dare all these flying beings show up at his hive? They flapped their wings angrily in response to his voice, mocking him with every flip of their feathers. A robin chattered at him and an eagle shrieked.

Tavros decided to lie down in the snow and die.

He sat back on his knees, staring at the birds before him. Their dark forms began to blur in his eyes.

Something really big landed in front of him with a thump. A wave of snow exploded over him, spilling over his shirt collar. The sudden coldness down his front jolted him awake.

A huge bird, bigger than Horsaroni, stood in the snow. It had wickedly sharp, curved, ivory claws as long as Tavros's forearm, a hooked beak, and beady orange eyes. A Roc – a legendary creature that was deadly and swift.

Tavros slowly got to his feet, reaching out with his mind to the bird. To his shock, he found that it was actually semi-intelligent, as opposed to most of the beasts he normally communed with.

((You called for a ride?)) the bird thought. It cocked its head and regarded him steadily with one calm orange eye.

All Tavros said was, "Let's go."


	11. Gamzee Makara

Wish list:  
-Faygo  
-Horns  
-More motherfucking horns! :o)  
-A real miracle

Time: 3:30 PM

Gamzee, never an early riser at the best of times, slept in very late that day. When he finally pulled himself out of his recuperacoon, half the day was gone. Hair un-brushed, he made his way downstairs to the kitchen. Karkat had made breakfast about six hours ago, maybe seven. Here Gamzee was judging by how many burned, caked-on barrivon beans there were in the bottom of the beverage pot. Best Friend should have known to turn the thing off earlier, but he probably forgot. If this one was shot, that would be third one this month. Better clean it up and hide the evidence. He wasn't in the mood to forage for himself, so he stuck everything in the irradiator for a few seconds and wolfed it down hot.

He wondered where Karkat was, but it didn't really matter. It was a big hive; he was sure his moirail was doing _something_ productive. And besides, Karkat usually checked up on him once in a while anyway, so he could find Gamzee instead of the other way around.

Gamzee went back to his respiteblock to open his gifts. He was just sitting down with the first one when something hit his window.

It took his not-yet-fully-awakened brain a moment to connect the noise with the idea that there was something outside the window, just as something else rapped sharply on the glass. Gamzee got up and peered out the window. Amid the softly drifting snowflakes, he saw –

A giant, angry looking bird, with Tavros sitting on its back between the wings.

And he hadn't had any spoor slime in over two months. He eyed his recuperacoon. But no, he'd get in trouble with his moirail.

Tavros yelled something, but Gamzee couldn't quite make it out. He opened the window.

"What, bro?" he said.

"Get out of the way!" Tavros yelled. Puzzled, Gamzee shrugged and stood back from the window to waited. He didn't see exactly what happened, but in a minute there was a crash as Tavros leapt or fell through the window in a tangle of horns and limbs. The bird must have landed on the roof; Gamzee heard a thud.

"Tavbro! Hey, man, what's up?" Gamzee said, as if having his matesprit crush thrown through his window by an imaginary bird was an everyday occurrence. Tavros sat up, and Gamzee saw that the poor guy's lips and fingers were blue with cold. He wasn't wearing a coat. Gamzee hurried to close the window.

"The Roc says she's, uh, sorry for, uh, knocking the top of your chimney off," Tavros said through chattering teeth.

Gamzee waved his hand dismissively and helped Tavros get to his feet. Best Friend was the one who paid attention to silly little things like housekeeping and chimneys. He, Gamzee, was the mischief and mayhem department.

"You look motherfucking freezing!" he said. "Come on downstairs, I'll get you some blankets or some shit."

The two descended to the living room, and Gamzee was true to his word. Soon Tavros was wrapped in thick layer of blankets, shivering slightly but none the worse for wear for his adventure.

"So, what's up, Tavbro?" Gamzee said. "What brings you to my hive this fine motherfucking day? And with no motherfucking coat, on a motherfucking bird! I thought you were a motherfucking vision or something."

"Uh, have you been hitting the spoor slime again?" Tavros said.

"No, bro, I take my Faygo straight these days," Gamzee said.

"Uh, good," Tavros said. "And, uh, I forgot my coat. That bird was warm, so my, uh, legs were okay, but my hands and face, not so much."

"How'd you get the motherfucking bird in the first place?" Gamzee said. Tavros explained what had happened.

"Wow, bro, I'm so glad you're okay. That is... a miracle," Gamzee said. He never thought he would say that word again. It felt alien in his mouth, rusty and disused. But it was true.

"I, uh, think so to," Tavros said shyly.

"So why'd you come here?" Gamzee said. "You could have gone anywhere in the motherfucking world, and you came to see the motherfucking lunatic."

Tavros laughed awkwardly. "You mean, uh, I could have gone anywhere in the world, and I went to the hive of my, uh, best bro," he said.

Gamzee got that warm feeling in his chest he had when he hugged Best Friend, thought about his lusus, or drank twelve Faygos in a row.

"Happy Twelfth Perigee's Eve, Tavbro," he said. "You the motherfucking _boss_!"

"Thanks. Uh, you too," Tavros said. And it seemed only right to follow that with a hug.

And they did.


	12. Terezi Pyrope

Wish list:  
-4 N3W S3N4TOR L3MONSNOUT PLUSH13  
-FOOD  
-4 G14NT CH4LKBO4RD FOR MY R3SP1T3BLOCK  
-4 N3W COLOUR OF CH4LK

Time: 4:30 PM

Terezi spent the morning putting her six new scalemates on trial for crimes ranging from corruption to bribery to murder to perjury. Most of them were found not guilty, so she could try them again at a later date. Probably tomorrow!

After lunch, she installed her new chalkboard and spent a pleasant hour experimenting with the box of chalk form Kanaya and paint from Nepeta. When she noticed that the snow was six inches high and picking up, and she still had two hours to kill, she decided to get out of the hive early. Didn't want to be snowed in alone at her own hive on Twelfth Perigee's Eve!

She was almost out the door when Trollian pinged. She glanced at the snow. Well... she could wait ten minutes. As long as it wasn't Eridan contacting her, of course.

It was Karkat.

CG: HEY TEREZI.  
GC: H1, K4RK4T. H4PPY TW3LFTH P3R1G33S 3V3!!  
CG: DO YOU LIKE THAT SCALEMATE I SENT YOU?  
GC: H3S MY N3W F4VOUR1T3  
GC: 1 H4NG3D H1M TH1S MORN1NG  
CG: YOU DID WHAT, YOU CRAZY BLIND GIRL?  
GC: H3 H4D 1T COM1NG!  
GC: H3 W4S TH3 MOST CORRUPT S3N4TOR 1 H4V3 3V3R L41D TONGU3 ON  
GC: 1TS ONLY 4 M4TT3R OF T1M3 B3FOR3 TH3Y GO B4D!  
CG: GOOD THING I HAVE ANOTHER GIFT FOR YOU, THEN.  
GC: YOU DO?  
CG: YEAH, SORT OF.  
GC: W3LL, WH4T 1S 1T?  
CG: OKAY.  
CG: YOU GET YOUR WISH. I GUESS THIS IS SORT OF LIKE GIVING YOU NEW CHALK.  
CG: BUT THE OTHER WISH TOO.  
CG: >:?  
CG: YOU M4K3 NO S3NS3.  
CG: I'M GOING TO CHANGE MY FONT COLOUR TO MY BLOOD COLOUR.  
CG: FOREVER.  
GC: WH4T? R34LLY?  
GC: FOR M3?  
CG: YES. HOLD ON.

Terezi waited with baited breath for a few moments. Was she right? Was he really a mutant blood? How long does it take to change the settings on Trollian, anyway?

CG: HERE.  
CG: HAPPY TWELFTH PERIGEE'S EVE.  
GC: CH3RR13S! Y3S!  
CG: SHIT, THIS COLOUR IS SCARY.  
CG: IT'S GOING TO CLASH WITH EVERYONE ELSE'S TEXT AND ANNOY THE CRAP OUT OF PEOPLE AND  
GC: MY F4VOUR1T3 COLOUR!  
GC: 4FT3R T34L, 1 M34N. >;]  
CG: FUCK, I GUESS I HAVE TO KEEP IT THEN.  
GC: TH4NK YOU. <3

Terezi waited a whole minute. Then another one. Then a third. Finally –

CG: <3


	13. Karkat Vantas

Wish list:  
-A LITTLE FUCKING RESPECT

Time: 5:30 PM

Karkat did not get a single gift that morning. At the time when Aradia was opening a boxful of fishnet socks, he was brewing Gamzee's barrivon. At the moment when Equius was aiming Darkleer's bow and a half-rate arrow at an unsuspecting tree, he was pacing angrily around his respiteblock, cursing Sollux and his stupid appearifier. As Nepeta was opening the door to her hive, Karkat was just on the verge of contacting Sollux on Trollian to give him an angry rant. But right then, an envelope materialized on top of his chest of drawers.

"More better be coming," he muttered as he grabbed the note and ripped it open. It read –

'Hey, KK,  
I'm super s0rry, but I burned 0ut the appearifier. I'm w0rking 0n fixing it, but it'll pr0bably take all day. H0pe y0u have a g00d Twelfth Perigee's Eve anyway.  
-S0llux'

As Eridan was running to Trollian to see who wanted him, Karkat was staring moodily out the window, wondering why he was alive.

He sat around all day, occasionally checking on Gamzee, but otherwise not doing anything at all. He heard the Roc land on the roof, but never thought to go see what it was. When he finally roused himself from his stupor and realised the day was gone, he got on Trollian right away to give Terezi her other gift. After their conversation was over (it concluded with Terezi saying she had to go for some reason he didn't quite catch), he sat staring at his computer screen for a full ten minutes, wondering if he'd come off as an idiot or if he should've had a little more or less fanfare, and why the hell had he taken three whole minutes to write a heart back? It wasn't that big a deal. Yeah, Karkat, screw everything up just like you normally do, why don't you.

Ping! Nepeta wanted to talk to him, Karkat groaned. Then he remembered that he'd changed his text colour, and swore.

AC :33 ~ hi there, karcat! happy twelfth perigees eve!  
CG: HI NEPETA.  
CG: SAME TO YOU. (:B  
AC :33 ~ ooh, i like your new font colour!  
AC :33 ~ betw33n yours and mine its the colours of perigees eve. you should go talk to kanaya! then it would be purrfect, h33 h33. XDD

Karkat sighed with relief and rolled his eyes. Of all the ways she could have reacted, this wasn't a bad one. Small miracles. Thank you, Nepeta.

CG: THANK YOU, CATPUN OBVIOUS.  
AC :33 ~ no purroblem! ;))  
CG: SO, WHAT DO YOU WANT?  
CG: NO ONE EVER TALKS TO ME UNLESS THEY WANT SOMETHING.  
AC :33 ~ thats not true! i talk to you fur other stuff all the time!  
CG: GET ON WITH IT.  
AC :33 ~ youre snappy. ://  
AC :33 ~ anyway  
AC :33 ~ sollux accidentally sent two of your presents ofur here, and i can't get them back to him beclaws i haven't got an appurrifier  
CG: DOES THIS MEAN I HAVE TO COME GET THEM?  
AC :33 ~ i would bring them to you, but equius is coming ofur and i don't think ill make it back in time if i leave the house now.  
AC :33 ~ sorry.  
CG: OKAY, I'M COMING.  
AC :33 ~ great! :DD  
CG: BYE.

Karkat stomped downstairs. He got a coat, hat, gloves, and snowboots from the closet in the hall. He couldn't leave without checking on his morail again, so he yelled for Gamzee, hoping he was out of bed by now. But no tall, gangly, clown-faced troll appeared.

Walking into Gamzee's room, Karkat spotted the note on his (unmade) bed immediately.

'Hey Best Motherfucking Friend,  
I went to see my Tavbro because he's feeling down again. Hope you don't mind. You were having a pretty intense convo on Trollian. See you later.  
♦ Gamzee'

Ugh! What was it with his friends and notes today? Karkat resented Tavros a little. It might be selfish, but he wanted his moirail here with him tonight. He envied Nepeta for hers.

After quickly writing another little note about where he'd be in case Gamzee came back before him (unlikely), he set off for Nepeta's hive. By far the largest of the new hives, it was also one of the closest, for which Karkat was glad. It was hard going, slogging through the still-accumulating snow.

As Karkat's exposed nose turned blue and his legs began to burn, angry thoughts buzzed around his skull like a disturbed nest of hornets.

Yeah, sure, send the leader his gifts last, because no one cares whether he gets them or not. He's just here to boss us around. Oh, don't bother to get him any stuff. Sollux should have just brought the gifts directly to him without fucking around with the damn appearifier. If he hadn't contacted Terezi, would anyone have told him Happy Twelfth Perigree's Eve at all? Gamzee hadn't even written it in that damn note of his! Sollux told him to have a "good" one, for gog's sake!

Sweet troll jegus, his friends were a bunch of inconsiderate wastrels.

By the time he got to the road to Nepeta's hive, he was absolutely steaming. The hive, while not in a cave anymore, was set back from the rest of them by a long drive which she had not cleared.

"Fuck winter!" Karkat yelled as he saw how far away the lights of the hive looked.

The outside of the hive was decorated in the human style, with coloured lights along the eaves and two cats sculpted out of snow flanking the entrance. Resisting the urge to put their eyes out, Karkat knocked on the door.

Nepeta opened it almost right away. Karkat wondered with irritation if she'd been waiting at the door for him. She was wearing a pretty, white-fur-trimmed maroon and green dress, and had actually left off her hat and brushed her hair for once.

Karkat was extremely suspicious all of a sudden.

"You look frozen!" Nepeta exclaimed. "Come inside!"

"Can I just get my fucking stuff and go?" Karkat said.

"You can't walk home in that wet coat. At least let me dry it for you. You'll get pneumonia or something," Nepeta said.

"Oh come on," Karkat said, although he had to concede that he'd rather walk home in warm clothes.

"No, _you_ come on, Karkitty. You practically have frostbite!" Nepeta said.

Grudgingly, Karkat stepped inside and began peeling off his outer garments.

"Boots," she said, and he set them down on the mat. Damn, there was no way he could make a fast escape now.

Nepeta disappeared for a moment, then came back without the coat.

"I put it on the heater," she said. "I'll just go and get those packages for you. Why don't you go into the living room?"

She pointed down the hallway, then dashed off in the other direction. Karkat watched her go, asking himself how he'd managed to get himself into this stupidity. Then he went down the hall. Damn, but her hive was huge. What did one lonely cat girl need all this space for, anyway?

He was angry, cold, and a little depressed as he opened the door to the living room.

He stopped dead in his tracks. And stared.

The entire room _was_ Twelfth Perigee's Eve. The walls were covered in an intricately painted mural of the highest points of SGRUB, especially the joyful reunions after the resurrections. The biggest behemoth leaving he'd ever seen was in the centre of the room, hung with a multitude of shiny objects that caught the warm, rosy light and sent silver spangles across the floor. Under it was a small heap of parcels that had to be for him. It smelled like cinnamon, and there was the cause – a table laden with pastry sat at the side of the room.

And in the centre – in front of the leaving – all eleven of his friends were waiting for him, with Gamzee, Terezi, and Nepeta in front.

"Happy Twelfth Perigee's Eve, Karkat!" they all chorused.

Karkat stood stunned. Absolutely bowled over. He didn't know what came over him, but suddenly there were tears in his eyes.

"Th- Thanks, guys. I – wow. For once in my life I'm speechless. You win, assholes," he said, his voice shaky.

"Then don't say anything, and come join the party!" Nepeta said. At her words, everyone broke ranks and surrounded him, giving him hugs, fist bumps, high fives. Someone ruffled his hair, Terezi or Gamzee probably.

"Hey, bro, you're the best."

"Happy Twelfth Perigee, O fearless leader."

"Karkitty!"

It was an incredible feeling, to be surrounded by a multitude of people all giving him warmest wishes and kindness. A warm feeling bubbled up from the pit of his stomach and suffused his entire being, a feeling like being wrapped in the arms of a loving mother, of curling up under warm blankets next to a loved one, of warm chocolate heavy in his stomach.

He'd never experienced anything like it before. It was the happiest he'd been in his entire life.

Karkat was safe. He was home. And he was loved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry again about Nepeta's quirk...


	14. Epilogue

Somewhere in the midst of the hug-fest, Nepeta slipped away and put on some upbeat music. The crowd subsided as trolls began to dance, head for the food, or start separate conversations. In the end, Karkat was surrounded by his three favourite people in the world – Kanaya, in a new hand-sewn dress, Gamzee, who was grinning like a maniac, and Terezi, who had on a low cut dress and a mischievous grin. Seeing that Karkat's eyes were still watering, Kanaya tactfully distracted Terezi by complimenting her on her outfit.

"Hey, there, bro," Gamzee said. "You okay, man?"

"I don't – I – why did you guys do this for me?" Karkat said.

"You're our leader, bro! You motherfucking saved us!" Gamzee said.

"No, John did," Karkat said. "So why –"

Gamzee lifted the smaller troll bodily off the ground and wrapped him in a huge hug. Karkat buried his face in Gamzee's shoulder, fighting the urge to cry with happiness.

"There, there, Best Friend," Gamzee said, sounding highly amused. "I always knew you were a pansy at heart."

"I am not a fucking pansy, now put me down!" Karkat yelled.

"Better now?" Gamzee said quietly in his ear, before lowering him back to the ground.

"Why do I even let you out in public, you worthless fuck?" Karkat snapped.

"I have no motherfucking clue," Gamzee replied, his smile growing wider.

Terezi, whose excitement could be contained no longer, came bounding up and tapped Karkat's shoulder.

"Hey, Karkles," she said coyly. "Aren't you going to ask me to dance?"

"Abso-fucking-lutely," he said, flipping Gamzee the bird as a parting shot.

The rest of the evening was a blur for Karkat. He danced with Terezi, consumed copious amounts of sugary food, opened the gifts that were pressed upon him, examined Nepeta's murals, talked with everyone, danced some more, talked some more. Gamzee and Tavros had flown there on a giant bird – who would have thought it? Apparently Eridan and Sollux were friends now, and Vriska and Kanaya were moirails. When did this happen, exactly? Feferi kept going on about surprises, and he didn't know what she meant, but he nodded and smiled the whole time before figuring out it had something to do with some dumb fish.

The party went on for longer than expected, and soon the sun had risen. They were all exhausted and couldn't leave. But Nepeta had set aside – and even decorated – four other rooms to use as guest respiteblocks for the night. He had no idea where she'd gotten all the sopor slime.

"You are a really fucking good hostess," Karkat told her. She beamed.

As earlier he'd hoped, he fell asleep next to his moirail, snug and warm. But what he had not expected was to go to bed full of good food, loving words ringing in his ears, exhausted from dancing, with a warm, happy glow in his chest and his friends all around him.


End file.
